Hummanaya Blowhole is the only known blowhole in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

and it is considered to be the second largest blowhole in the world. ( Sinhala: = ) refers to the noise, "hoo", that can be heard a distance away when the blowhole is active.

Location

The Hummanaya Blowhole is located from the small

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 m ...

of Kudawella, which is from Matara, from

Dikwella Dikwella, also known as Dickwella and as Dikwella South, is a small coastal market town in the Matara district in Southern province of Sri Lanka. It is located east of the city of Matara. Dikwella is noted for its long sandy beach which is pr ...

and from

Tangalle Tangalle ( Sinhala තංගල්ල , ta, தங்கல்லை) (also known as Tangalla) is a large town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is one of the largest towns in southern provinc ...

, in the Southern Province.

Attraction

Hummanaya is a natural blowhole, and caused when sea water rushes through a submerged cavern and is pushed upwards. The sea water flows underneath the shore, and then comes out of this hole due to pressure. The

water fountain A drinking fountain, also called a water fountain or water bubbler, is a fountain designed to provide drinking water. It consists of a basin with either continuously running water or a tap. The drinker bends down to the stream of water and s ...

created by the geological feature shoots up every couple of minutes, depending on the nature of the sea, with the spray often reaching as high as to . This site has now been developed as a

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural b ...

, with a small visitors' information centre on

marine life Marine life, sea life, or ocean life is the plants, animals and other organisms that live in the salt water of seas or oceans, or the brackish water of coastal estuaries. At a fundamental level, marine life affects the nature of the planet. M ...

and a viewing platform.{{cite news, last=Waidyasekera, first=A., title=Hummanaya Developed, url=http://pdfs.island.lk/2009/11/24/p4.pdf, accessdate=20 March 2012, newspaper= The Island, date=24 November 2009, agency=Upali Newspapers, page=4

References

Blowholes Tangalle